"Max laid on his bed, feeling tired, yet anxious about tomorrow's workout --pulldowns and deadlifts. He wasn't concerned about the pulldowns, [because he was] almost always capable of improvement [there]...it was the deadlifts. The weight was becoming so great that improvement was correspondingly becoming more difficult. And it was more than even the lack of improvement; it was the extreme effort that accompanied deadlifting. The mere thought of having to heave and strain with 400 pounds for multiple repetitions made him cringe.
"He often wondered why he continued to 'torture' his mind and body through unnatural acts of high-intensity training, and tonight was no exception....He contemplated long and hard, denoting many benefits, including the admiration of others (that he is dedicated, persistent, and looks athletic), how the discipline of high intensity trianing positively seeped into other aspects of his life, and that without exercise -- he would feel incomplete. `There is no bifurcation between mind and body,' he thought.
"That morning, Max leaped off his bed, like a child on Christmas morning. His reason for training was concrete, and his motivation had returned....
"Several hours passed, allowing Max to consume breakfast and lunch, and complete some necessary chores. `Damn,' he said. `I was so much more psyched this morning.' Max was never a 'morning' person, usually opting to train in the early afternoon. Knowing that he was stronger at this time of day, Max realized that it was the negativity -- the stress -- of having to deadlift within the next hour that controlled his emotions and his motivation, and which possibly drained him physically when the time came to train. Although he tried to remain calm, the image of extreme effort, of muscle strain, burn and nausea began to make him nervous, causing him to relieve himself with two bowel movements over the course of an hour....
"`This can't be normal,' he thought. He knew that after 15 years of training, progress is slow... very slow. After all, how much strength and muscle can anyone obtain. Even heavy drug users don't look much different from one year to the next. Moreover, it's not a 'do-or-die' situation here... I'm exercising for health reasons, and a sound mental faculty is part of good health. This notion helped to calm his mind and bring him back to reality. Max began to put his training into proper context, that although high intensity training is serious business, it should also be enjoyable...
"Max then decided that he was going to take a 'care-free' attitude with training, that he wants to improve, but if he doesn't then so be it... he will simply try next time, with no expectations. This was important for Max to establish since training became progressively more demanding for him as he aged. Only in his early thirties, he knew, but he did not want to face the truth, that the dread of exercise could be self-defeating as he approached his 40s, 50s, and beyond -- how much anguish can one person stand if they detested their training, regardless of the possible physical benefits. It would be impossible to sustain motivation to improve...
"Max casually walked down the steps into his basement....He thought fondly of the 'old days', when he first began training...when his enthusiasm and desire were at a pinnacle. He remembered ordering an exercise bench from a mail-order catalogue, and how excited he was when it finally arrived. `Now,' he had said fifteen years previous, `I can look like Arnold.' He had to laugh as he looked at his 180 pound body in the mirror....
"He was still happy at the progress he'd made, having started at a weight of less than 140 pounds. Again he laughed unexpectedly, but this time at the irony of what knowledge has done to his motivation. `Now that I know how to exercise,' he thought, `training has become more of a job than a hobby. It appeared to be more enjoyable when I didn't know what I was doing -- more frustrating, but more enjoyable.' He then realized that it was not knowledge of training, but knowledge of genetic limitations and what was required to produce results that affected his motivation.
"'No', he said. 'I will not allow negative images to creep into my mind. I'm simply going to try, have fun in taking the challenge in improving, and let the cards fall where they may.'
"[After a brief warm-up] Max sat on the pulldown machine, and braced himself under the leg restraints. He could feel his heart pounding, but kept his breathing calm and under control. He slowly reached up and grabbed the handle with an underhand grip, and began to pull the resistance toward his chest. He focused on his lats contracting, his elbows driving back. Slowly he finished one repetition after another. As he felt his muscles gradually fatigue, Max progressively increased his focus -- a focus to become angry, to increase adrenaline to augment his strength and mental willingness to continue through the agony. During the final two repetitions he wanted to explode the weight down. `Oh, god,' he thought, `this is getting hard.' But he maintained his form, experiencing every 'miserable' inch of the movement. On his last repetition, which he barely completed, Max held the bar across his chest, fighting the resistance for one all-out static contraction. After fifteen seconds, he slowly returned the bar to its original resting position. The resistance was 5 pounds heavier than last workout, for the same number of repetitions and time under tension -- plus he included a static contraction. He felt pleased with his accomplishment, that he improved, and proceeded to write his experience and data in his workout journal.
"Max was halfway through logging his time under tension that he remembered the deadlifts. 'Oh, yes, the deadlifts,' he murmured. The effort and exhaustion of the pulldowns caused him to momentarily forget the heavy barbell awaiting him in the corner. He paused momentarily then blurted out, 'Screw it, just do it.' He snickered at his choice of words, and thought 'how profound.'...
"He eased the 410 pounds slowly off the bottom pins of the power rack, pushing his hips forward, his shoulders back, while focusing on his feet driving straight down through the floor. Each repetition become more difficult that the last. As he approached the fifth repetition he invoked his anger response to the pain and to increase the adrenaline rush. Consecutively he made certain his form did not suffer, that his low back remained in a neutral position as he strained under the enormous weight.
"Max completed his seventh repetition, with one more to go... one more to better himself from the last workout. He then thought as he stood erect, 'I could stop now and call it a day. I could without any reservation... without feeling defeated... because I put in a damn good effort.' Max then knew he had won over the ponderous inanimate object he held in his hands. He also knew that he could complete that elusive eighth repetition because he was not mentally conquered, was not psyched out by his own psyche. He slowly lowered the weight to the bottom position, paused momentarily, then lifted the metal one last time. The sense of accomplishment was profound.... He reached over to his journal and pen, then wrote:
"Success does not necessarily mean advancement;... it refers to the accomplishment or sense of achievement one obtains from trying one's best... I...enjoy the process of become stronger and more muscular."
"He often wondered why he continued to 'torture' his mind and body through unnatural acts of high-intensity training, and tonight was no exception....He contemplated long and hard, denoting many benefits, including the admiration of others (that he is dedicated, persistent, and looks athletic), how the discipline of high intensity trianing positively seeped into other aspects of his life, and that without exercise -- he would feel incomplete. `There is no bifurcation between mind and body,' he thought.
"That morning, Max leaped off his bed, like a child on Christmas morning. His reason for training was concrete, and his motivation had returned....
"Several hours passed, allowing Max to consume breakfast and lunch, and complete some necessary chores. `Damn,' he said. `I was so much more psyched this morning.' Max was never a 'morning' person, usually opting to train in the early afternoon. Knowing that he was stronger at this time of day, Max realized that it was the negativity -- the stress -- of having to deadlift within the next hour that controlled his emotions and his motivation, and which possibly drained him physically when the time came to train. Although he tried to remain calm, the image of extreme effort, of muscle strain, burn and nausea began to make him nervous, causing him to relieve himself with two bowel movements over the course of an hour....
"`This can't be normal,' he thought. He knew that after 15 years of training, progress is slow... very slow. After all, how much strength and muscle can anyone obtain. Even heavy drug users don't look much different from one year to the next. Moreover, it's not a 'do-or-die' situation here... I'm exercising for health reasons, and a sound mental faculty is part of good health. This notion helped to calm his mind and bring him back to reality. Max began to put his training into proper context, that although high intensity training is serious business, it should also be enjoyable...
"Max then decided that he was going to take a 'care-free' attitude with training, that he wants to improve, but if he doesn't then so be it... he will simply try next time, with no expectations. This was important for Max to establish since training became progressively more demanding for him as he aged. Only in his early thirties, he knew, but he did not want to face the truth, that the dread of exercise could be self-defeating as he approached his 40s, 50s, and beyond -- how much anguish can one person stand if they detested their training, regardless of the possible physical benefits. It would be impossible to sustain motivation to improve...
"Max casually walked down the steps into his basement....He thought fondly of the 'old days', when he first began training...when his enthusiasm and desire were at a pinnacle. He remembered ordering an exercise bench from a mail-order catalogue, and how excited he was when it finally arrived. `Now,' he had said fifteen years previous, `I can look like Arnold.' He had to laugh as he looked at his 180 pound body in the mirror....
"He was still happy at the progress he'd made, having started at a weight of less than 140 pounds. Again he laughed unexpectedly, but this time at the irony of what knowledge has done to his motivation. `Now that I know how to exercise,' he thought, `training has become more of a job than a hobby. It appeared to be more enjoyable when I didn't know what I was doing -- more frustrating, but more enjoyable.' He then realized that it was not knowledge of training, but knowledge of genetic limitations and what was required to produce results that affected his motivation.
"'No', he said. 'I will not allow negative images to creep into my mind. I'm simply going to try, have fun in taking the challenge in improving, and let the cards fall where they may.'
"[After a brief warm-up] Max sat on the pulldown machine, and braced himself under the leg restraints. He could feel his heart pounding, but kept his breathing calm and under control. He slowly reached up and grabbed the handle with an underhand grip, and began to pull the resistance toward his chest. He focused on his lats contracting, his elbows driving back. Slowly he finished one repetition after another. As he felt his muscles gradually fatigue, Max progressively increased his focus -- a focus to become angry, to increase adrenaline to augment his strength and mental willingness to continue through the agony. During the final two repetitions he wanted to explode the weight down. `Oh, god,' he thought, `this is getting hard.' But he maintained his form, experiencing every 'miserable' inch of the movement. On his last repetition, which he barely completed, Max held the bar across his chest, fighting the resistance for one all-out static contraction. After fifteen seconds, he slowly returned the bar to its original resting position. The resistance was 5 pounds heavier than last workout, for the same number of repetitions and time under tension -- plus he included a static contraction. He felt pleased with his accomplishment, that he improved, and proceeded to write his experience and data in his workout journal.
"Max was halfway through logging his time under tension that he remembered the deadlifts. 'Oh, yes, the deadlifts,' he murmured. The effort and exhaustion of the pulldowns caused him to momentarily forget the heavy barbell awaiting him in the corner. He paused momentarily then blurted out, 'Screw it, just do it.' He snickered at his choice of words, and thought 'how profound.'...
"He eased the 410 pounds slowly off the bottom pins of the power rack, pushing his hips forward, his shoulders back, while focusing on his feet driving straight down through the floor. Each repetition become more difficult that the last. As he approached the fifth repetition he invoked his anger response to the pain and to increase the adrenaline rush. Consecutively he made certain his form did not suffer, that his low back remained in a neutral position as he strained under the enormous weight.
"Max completed his seventh repetition, with one more to go... one more to better himself from the last workout. He then thought as he stood erect, 'I could stop now and call it a day. I could without any reservation... without feeling defeated... because I put in a damn good effort.' Max then knew he had won over the ponderous inanimate object he held in his hands. He also knew that he could complete that elusive eighth repetition because he was not mentally conquered, was not psyched out by his own psyche. He slowly lowered the weight to the bottom position, paused momentarily, then lifted the metal one last time. The sense of accomplishment was profound.... He reached over to his journal and pen, then wrote:
"Success does not necessarily mean advancement;... it refers to the accomplishment or sense of achievement one obtains from trying one's best... I...enjoy the process of become stronger and more muscular."
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